Shut the front door

Hey all. I know it has been quite a while since my last post. I don't enjoy blogging but I have heard from a few people that actually read it, and they want more. I guess it is a good thing that I don't blog too often because otherwise those people may not feel that way. So I want to break things down into a couple categories and write accordingly. This first category is going to be things I've accomplished in Mali up to now, followed by things I hope to accomplish in the future, and then finally just some comments/stories about the Malian Culture. So, here goes...

I have just recently passed the one year mark as an official Peace Corps volunteer in Mali. There are a few things I have accomplished in that time. (Some would argue not enough, but we won't get into that because I feel satisfied with my accomplishments thus far.) I feel like the most important thing I've done in my first year is getting proficient in speaking Bambara. Without doing that everything else becomes exponentially difficult. I am not implying that there aren't times when I have no idea what people are saying, because that wouldn't be true. But, I do feel I am understanding about 55%-60% of what people are saying. Which is pretty good considering I only studied Bambara for about two months. The rest of it I just picked up by living with all Bambara speakers. This proficiency in the language has also had a direct result on my cultural integration process. I feel so integrated in my village and community that it has become my home and the people, well "my people" so to speak. This has become the experience I was hoping it would be. I was in doubt during those initial two months, because I underestimated how difficult the cultural shock and transition would be. I didn't give up and the reward has been unquantifiable. So with the language skills and cultural adaptation combined I was able to have my first successful Water/Sanitation project. I started the project in the middle of last may in finished just before my trip back to the U.S. in July. The project was a success because the villagers were motivated and hard working. We were able to build 52 of the most basic latrines imaginable. Step 1: Dig a big hole. Step 2: Pour a concrete and re bar cover with a small hole for waste to pass through. Step 3: Cover the hole with the cement lid. Step 4: Build a mud wall for privacy. Step 5: USE IT. We also build soak pits next to the latrines to collect waste water from gathering on the surface. It was a huge success because it showed the villagers that I am serious about working and making Kafoujiela a better/cleaner/healthier place (and also because it will cut some of the people from openly defecating). The project was funded by USAID. I filled out a form requesting funds along with a project proposal. Once the funds were in place I purchased the materials and arranged for it to be transported by truck to my village. I didn't purchase enough re bar, and since the truck transport was so expensive I arranged for a guy and his donkey cart to bring it in for a fraction of the price. Once all the materials were in place I oversaw the day to day operations and made sure my workers were well fed and happy. It took about 4 weeks to complete the 52 latrines. The original plan was for 50, but two villagers offered us chickens if we would put one in their concession. Another smaller project I helped out with was walking around the village vaccinating 250 children for polio. It was an experience I will never forget. Most all of the kids know me (I tend to stand out) but there are still a few very young ones that are terrified of me. Thankfully it was just an oral vaccination in a liquid form and not a shot, but it was still painful for some. To have some weird white guy come over and force open your mouth and drop medicine in was more than some of the kids could handle. There was tons of screaming and crying. I learned pretty fast not to have the kids face you while you put the medicine in because a few of them would spit it right back in your face (that only happened twice before it didn't happen again). Anyway I count that project as a success and it was very rewarding and fun. The last project I want to talk about is more of a hobby. I have become the unofficial official wedding photographer and all around photographer of any party/event in Kafoujiela. They tell me its because my camera is so nice (not because I take good photos), but I think its because I charge them exactly what the photo shop charges me. I am not doing it for any profit, because I lose money doing it, but because to see how happy the pictures make them is profit enough.

I have some projects planned for the future but there is only a three month window to really do any construction stuff. Right now we are in the rainy season and there is no way to do any construction. Then when the rains stop all the men go out to the fields to work from sunrise to sunset. So the only three months I have when people are free and there is now rain is from April through June, which also happens to be HOT SEASON. There is a project that I am working on right now though, and that is getting the one pump in my village fixed. It's been broken since before I got here. I told my Wat/San committee the community would be responsible to pay and oversee the pump repair because if it breaks again they need to be able to fix it. So they said okay they are going to fix it. That was easy, I should've told them to fix it right when I moved there. But it hasn't been fixed yet so we'll see if they are telling the truth. The next big project I have planned for the three month window are wash areas and soak pits. Next to each well in my village is a place where the women wash clothes and dishes. All the water that runs off from that just sits in pools on the surface and becomes a breeding ground for flies, mosquitoes, and disease. We will attempt to build cement wash areas with drains to get the water underground. I will take before and after pictures so you all can see how bad it really is. Another side/personal project I am working on is trying to but my host family a moto. This will help them to get into the nearby city without the moto breaking down because the roads are so horrible. I'm getting sick of typing right now so I am going end this pretty soon.

I will have to save funny stories about Malian culture as well as a list of books I've read so far for the next post. I am working in a shared space right now and people are shouting and it is impossible to concentrate. Inconsiderate....

It's been awhile...

My last post was a long time ago, so I will give everyone a quick update. I've survived the Holiday season here in Mali and away from home without a scratch. Although I did acquire a rather large bruise from falling off a bridge, and my back is still hurting when I move it certain ways. I was in Bamako (Mali's capitol city) for a two week training session in early December. I was walking to a fine establishment (actually a bar we nicknamed the "Trash Pile") with fellow volunteers one dark night. I hadn't started drinking yet. We were walking up to a single lane bridge and cars were coming from both directions. We all moved to get off to the side of the road since there are no sidewalks. I was temporarily blinded by the headlights and ended up walking straight off the bridge falling 20 feet onto dirt, rocks, and cement. I got the wind knocked out of me and hurt my back pretty badly. X-rays came back negative. I've been nicknamed "bridge kid" and have an awesome story to tell when I get older and complain about back pain!
Some future plans include going to the Segou music festival in the beginning of Feb and then off to Senegal and Gambia each for a few days. There is a multi-country softball tournament going on in Senegal. Since we will be out that way we plan on visiting Gambia as well. When I'm not traveling I will be back at site near Sikasso. I want to begin working very soon. My language is coming along well and I am starting to feel at home in my village. Right now my counterpart, as well as many other people in the village, are out working in the fields maintaining their potato crops. I think work will be easier to get done once the potato harvest is over in March. Then the hot/dry season starts. I'm not looking forward to it. I will be looking forward to the rains coming back in late May or June, and for my mango tree to bloom!
I just wanted to share two quick stories about village life. The first is about my typical mornings at site. I have found a way to get a supply of eggs. So I eat an egg sandwich every morning. I saute garlic before I fry the eggs on top, then slide the eggs onto a fresh loaf of bread. It's really good. Then I sit on my front porch and eat. Lately there have been this momma chicken and her six little chicks that sneak into my concession via the drain hole in one of the walls. They come in to eats seeds or whatever else happens to be edible on my front yard. I like to look at the chicks and think about chicken nuggets or how delicious my egg sandwich is. Sometimes I will open up the gate and goats and sheep will come in and eat the weeds or whatever that grow in my yard. It is a great way to keep that stuff trimmed without doing any work. I also thinking about closing the door behind them and making lamb chops or a goat sandwich, but they are not my animals and someone is bound to get pissed off.
The second story has to do with a time I felt I was in bizzaro America. I went to the doctor's concession to have tea. (A concession is a family's walled in property. They usually have a few mud or concrete buildings in the concession. A kitchen house, sleeping quarters, and granary huts.) His family and a few friends were there. The kids were doing homework and watching t.v. while the wife and daughters were preparing the next day's meals. The doctor and his friends were drinking tea. It seemed like a typical thing that American families might do (just replace the tea with an alcoholic beverage). The difference was that we were sitting on benches and lawn chairs outside watching a black and white TV powered by a car battery and solar panel. The women were sitting on tiny stools washing food in tubs. The boy doing his homework was using a little chalkboard and a flashlight. Finally, the doctor and and his friends were brewing tea over hot coals. Not to mention the random goat or chicken walking by.
That's all for now. Peace.